Ernest Owen Mayne – Suffolk Regiment

Private Ernest Owen Mayne – Suffolk Regiment

Ernest Owen Mayne, born in 1906 in Swansea, was the son of William Mayne and Maria Dyer, who had married in 1888 at St. John‑juxta‑Swansea. His early life unfolded in the industrial neighbourhoods of the town, shaped by tinworks labour and the close‑knit families of Jockey Street.

1911 Census – Written as a Paragraph

1911 Census

By the 1911 Census, the Mayne family were living at 7 Jockey Street, Swansea, where William, aged 40 and born in Devon, worked as a Shipper Tinworks, and his wife Maria, aged 41 and born in Cornwall, managed a large and busy household. Their children—Annie, 16; James S., 14, employed at the Cold Roll Tinworks; William H., 10; Mildred, 8; Ernest O., 5; Katie M., 3; and Mabel M., an infant of eight months—filled the home, reflecting the typical industrial family of Swansea’s tinplate era.

1921 Census – Written as a Paragraph

1921 Census

Following William’s death in 1914, the 1921 Census records the widowed Maria, now 52, residing at 36a Jockey Street and continuing to undertake household duties while her older children contributed to the family’s livelihood. Present in the home were Samuel James, 24, a Fuel Worker at Grigola Fuel Works; William Henry, 20, a Brickworks Labourer at Baldwins Silica South Works; Elizabeth Mildred, 18, employed as a Rancher at Cannister Works; Ernest Owen, 15, working as a Pipe Greaser at Mills English Superheater Unit Works; and Katie Maude, 14, still attending school. Also living with the family were two grandsons—William John Henry Phillips, 10, and Sidney Ernest, 8—both of whom attended school. The census portrays a household sustained by industrial labour, with Ernest already contributing to the family’s income at a young age.

Marriage and Early Adulthood

In 1935, Ernest married Irene Leeder Salmon, and by the 1939 Register the couple were living at 72 Western Street, Swansea, where Ernest was employed as a Mason’s Labourer, continuing the family tradition of skilled manual work.

Ernest Owen Mayne
Oystermouth Cemetery, Mumbles
credit - findagrave

Wartime Service – Suffolk Regiment

Ernest served as a Private with the Suffolk Regiment, a unit heavily engaged in the European theatre during the Second World War. His industrial background and early working life made him well suited to the regiment’s demanding operational roles.

Death and Burial

Ernest Owen Mayne died on 25 March 1945, during the final weeks of the war in Europe. He was laid to rest at Oystermouth Cemetery, where his name stands among Swansea’s wartime dead—men whose lives were shaped by industry, family duty, and ultimately, military service.